Managing Director
Berkeley Yorkery is the Managing Director of the Samuel DuBois Cook Center on Social Equity. In this role, she partners with leadership to advance program development, strategy, partnerships, evaluation, communications, and operations. She joined the Center in June 2026.
Berkeley is passionate about integrating research and data with the knowledge and lived experience of practitioners and community members to drive meaningful improvements in programs, policies, and systems that advance better outcomes and reduce inequities. Prior to joining the Cook Center, she served at the Duke-Margolis Institute for Health Policy as Managing Director of an initiative focused on improving maternal and early childhood outcomes. She also worked at the Center for Child and Family Policy at Duke’s Sanford School of Public Policy, where, as Scientific Manager, she helped implement the Center’s strategic vision across its research, education, and engagement portfolios.
Earlier in her career, Berkeley served as Associate Director at the North Carolina Institute of Medicine, where she played a key role in advancing statewide policy and research initiatives to improve the health and well-being of North Carolinians. She worked closely with policymakers, funders, researchers, health professionals, and community partners to translate evidence into action. She also worked at NC Child and Child Trends, where she led research and data analysis, authored publications, and contributed to policy campaigns focused on improving outcomes for children and families.
Berkeley earned her Master of Public Policy from Georgetown University and her BA in Public Policy and Psychology from Duke University.